


Never in The Same Time

by mhei_lynn



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Angst, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-07-15
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:34:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 1,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22064860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mhei_lynn/pseuds/mhei_lynn
Summary: Arthur had met many sorcerers. Those that tried to kill him, and those who are caught before they could have done something.Arthur remembers them all.And now Arthur will remember this sorcerer. One who did not harm him, but someone who tried to save him.Arthur will surely remember this one.
Comments: 7
Kudos: 50





	1. Chapter 1

Arthur had met many sorcerers. Those that tried to kill him, and those who are caught before they could have done something.

Either way, they all end up dead.

Pyre, beheading, drowning. It didn’t matter how they all ended up dead.

Arthur remembers them all. The painful screams as they burned to death. The angry shouts of those who swore vengeance, as someone dropped the axe on their heads. And children who cried and pleaded for help as they slowly suffocate.

Arthur always remembers.

And now Arthur will remember this sorcerer. One who did not harm him, but someone who tried to save him.

Arthur will surely remember this one.

“You got to be careful around here kid, the forest is full of ban- Arthur?”

The prince quickly raised his sword towards the older man. “What do you want sorcerer?”

“Magic is punishable by death in Camelot,” he said, observing the sorcerer. He looked odd, wearing baggy foreign clothes.

The sorcerer only stared at him “Hi younger Arthur” he said with a large smile on his face.

Arthur only glared. _‘What nonsense is he speaking?’_

“As someone who will become a knight next year and the royal prince of this kingdom. I’ll let you go free. The next time I see you, I will kill you”

The sorcerer chuckled. “It’s gonna take more than one blow to take me apart”

The prince’s grip on the sword became tighter, “Are you mocki-“

The sorcerer fell on his knees, a white light binding him, and pulsing as if it was alive.

“Dammit, I can’t even hold it for this long?...” Arthur heard him mutter under his breath.

“Hey, what’s wrong?”

“Well try to take care of yourself, Arthur. You were always quite a trouble magnet, you clotpole” The sorcerer said, a big grin on his face.

“What’s that supposed to me-“ Suddenly a blinding light flashed from within the sorcerer.

When Arthur opened his eyes, he was already gone.


	2. Chapter 2

Arthur pointed the sword at the back of the sorcerer.

“You-“ he growled. “-did I not say that I would kill you the next time we meet.”

It was him again, the same sorcerer from the year before. He thought that he left or escaped. And not stupid enough to come back to Camelot.

The sorcerer turned towards him, staring.

Strange, it was certainly the same face that Arthur had remembered but somehow different. The gentle smile and soft eyes were now a stiff frown and eyes that looked defeated.

This sorcerer had looked like he had completely given up like he had no more hope left in him.

The sorcerer scowled at him “You-“ he spit the words out with so much anger. “Do you think this is funny Arthur?!” he yelled.

“What are you on ab-“

“Why can’t you just leave me be?!”

“Why do you keep appearing? I’m sorry…”

“…I’m sorry okay?”

This wasn’t the same person, Arthur thought. No, this person was angry and bitter and full of sadness. Not like the first, the other was… happy and content.

“And I tried” his voice felt so desperate and now. “I tried so hard Arthur…”

“But I-“ the man’s voice was shaking as if he was going to choke on every little word. “But I failed…” he whispered. “I couldn’t save you”

Arthur cleared his throat. “I don’t know what you mean, but I can assure you that I am very much ali-“

_“Shut up!”_ The ground suddenly shook, and the air felt tense that it was hard to breathe.

“You’renotrealyou’renotrealyou’renot…” the sorcerer squatted down, hands on his ears, and repeating his tiny mantra.

“You’re dead and I-“ his breath hitched. “You’re not coming back”

Another light wrapped around the sorcerer likes vines. And with a flash, he was gone again.


	3. Chapter 3

Arthur scowled. ‘ _ Again?’ _

Arthur stared at the sorcerer, he was in a daze simply staring at the lake. It was so strange, the same faces but it still felt like they were different people. 

The first face was happy and friendly, a big stupid grin permanently plastered on his face. The second one was pure anger and bitterness, completely devoid of any hope on his face. 

...and now… Jesus Christ, is this really the same person?

The sorcerer was a big threat. The first one was powerful, don’t be fooled by his idiotic look, Arthur still remembers how he flung three bandits with a flick of a wrist. The second one even shook the ground for Christ’s sake.

But this one felt so small. Arthur couldn’t see the threat, couldn’t see the power, couldn’t see the danger,  _ couldn’t see the sorcerer.  _ All Arthur could see was one small lonely man.

He sighed, walking towards him. The sorcerer made no move to even acknowledge him. Arthur sat down, not too far but not too close, he gripped his sword tighter just in case.

“Hey, what are you doing here?” The sorcerer doesn’t answer, he simply stared at the lake. Arthur frowned, realizing that maybe the sorcerer will not answer. He glared at the lake as if it was withholding the answers from him.

“...waiting” it was so quiet that if Arthur wasn’t paying attention he wouldn’t have heard it.

“For… for who?” He ended up asking as if the answer was personally important to him.

Still the sorcerer didn’t look at him, only gazing ahead at the lake “... my king”

Arthur doesn’t understand and yet at the same time it felt like he understood everything 


	4. Chapter 4

“Why do you keep doing that?” Arthur finally asked at their fourth meeting. The fact that the sorcerer keeps disappearing with a flash of light freaks Arthur out a bit,  _ not that he would ever admit it. _

“Do what?” The sorcerer looked at him, confused.

“That-” Arthur flayed his arms. “That light thing you keep doing”

“Oh… I guess I haven’t explained it to this version of you huh…” The sorcerer mumbled, and Arthur doesn’t quite understand.

“It’s...uh...magic?” The sorcerer said with a goofy grin on his face. Arthur gave him a deadpan look and the sorcerer only laughed.

“It’s time travel. Really difficult to control though, so I ended up leaving before I want to” Arthur froze. Now, maybe Arthur doesn’t know much about magic except that practicing it will lead you to the other side of the spectrum but travelling through time? He is almost sure that it must be incredibly difficult, and yet this man shrugs it off as if he was dealing with a tiny arithmetic problem.

“So you’re from the past?” The sorcerer shook his head.  _ From the future then. _

“What’s it like?”

“Imagine a dumpster on fire”

Arthur nods, he’s not sure what a dumpster was though.

=-=-=-

“What’s your name?”

The sorcerer stared at him before smiling. “I’ll tell you mine if you give yours” there was mischievous glint in his eyes.

Arthur’s brows furrowed. “You already know my name, it’s Art-” The sorcerer flicked his forehead, Arthur quickly drew out his sword. He should have known that the sorcerer would attack him sooner or later, he was an idiot!

The sorcerer stepped back, his hands surrendered in the air “You shouldn’t be giving out your name that easily, you’ll get taken by faeries at this rate”. And the sorcerer whispered something he couldn’t quite hear “...how you made it past twenty I honestly don’t know…”

Arthur was silent. He could faintly remember Gauis talk about a myth, something about names having powers. His sword is still pointed at the sorcerer, he wasn’t stupid enough to risk it.

“It’s Merlin, by the way, my name I mean”

=-=-=-

“Why do you keep helping me?” Arthur asked as he and the sorcer- no,  _ Merlin  _ were tying up the bandits.

“Do you want to hear the truth or do you want a believable lie?”

“The truth”

“We used to be friends”

“That’s a lie” Merlin simply shrugged in response. “I would never be friends with a sorcerer” He let out an exasperated sigh, of course, a sorcerer wouldn’t tell the truth.

“Do you want to hear the lie instead?” Merlin stared at him and then at the sky. “Magic is banned at Camelot, and your people persecuted thousands of us” Arthur felt a pang of guilt.

“Why did you guys do it?” Merlin’s voice felt empty and Arthur was almost hesitant to answer but still, he said “It’s because magic is evil”

“But what if it isn’t?” Merlin’s quick to reply. “If by chance I could prove that it isn’t evil, will my king lift the ban?”

_ Magic is evil and that will never change,  _ he wanted to say. But the words died at his throat. It’s a logical answer, a sorcerer helping a prince and later down the road the prince could lift the ban once he is king. It’s a logical explanation.

So why did the first answer sounded more believable?


	5. Chapter 5

“Hey, come on that’s enough”

_'What?’_ Arthur thought. _‘What in the world is he doing here!?’_

“You had your fun, my friend,” Merlin said with that stupid grin on his face. _‘At least he isn’t being the emo or grumpy him’_

“Do I know you?” Arthur is absolutely not covering up for his absolutely not sorcerer friend. _‘If he feels threatened he might end up wrecking the citadel’_ Arthur reasoned with himself

“I’m Merlin”

“So I don’t know you”

“No”

“Yet you called me friend”

“That was my mistake” Arthur found himself nodding, the crisis was averted. “I’d never have a friend who could be such an ass”

_‘I should have run a sword through him the first time we met’_

* * *

Arthur stood by the lake, impatiently waiting for Merlin.

A burst of light appeared in the corner of his eye. Arthur turned to face Merlin.

“What in the world was that?!”

Merlin blinked, confusion evident on his face. “What was what, my lord?”

“Why in the world were you in the citadel earlier?!” Arthur growled back, why was he even pretending?

“I was no-” He fell silent. Arthur couldn’t quite describe Merlin’s expression.

“Did you meet me today? You said something stupid I think- _“I did not!”_ -something about knee walking yeah?”

“Yes? Why are you so unsure? You were there!”

“Oh,” Merlin made that same expression again. Arthur still doesn’t know what it means.

“That wasn’t me- _“What do you mean it’s not you?!”_ was someone walking around with Merlin’s face? Can sorcerers do that? Of course, they can do that, fucking sorcerers.

“I mean it’s me but not really?” Arthur is this close to punching Merlin.

Merlin laughed at his expression before clumsily explaining how that was supposed to be him in the past (“Technically he’s me from the present? Time travel is confusing…” Merlin muttered under his breath) and how that was their supposedly first meeting. He looked up to Arthur, asking if he had any questions.

“Do you always call people an ass when you first meet them?”

“Only when they are, my lord”

_“Why you little-”_


End file.
